Education of the republic of uzbekistan termez state university foreign philology faculty the department of english language and literature

Gender-neutral language or gender-inclusive language is language that avoids bias towards a particular sex or gender. In English, this includes use of nouns that are not gender-specific to refer to roles or professions,^[1] formation of phrases in a coequal manner, and discontinuing the blanket use of male or female terms.^[2] For example, the words policeman^[3][4] and stewardess^[5][6] are gender-specific job titles; the corresponding gender-neutral terms are police officer^[7][8] and flight attendant.^[9][10] Other gender-specific terms, such as actor and actress, may be replaced by the originally male term; for example, actor used regardless of gender.^[11][12][13] Some terms, such as chairman,^[14][15] that contain the component -man but have traditionally been used to refer to persons regardless of sex are now seen by some as gender-specific.^[16] An example of forming phrases in a coequal manner would be using husband and wife instead of man and wife.^[17] Examples of discontinuing the blanket use of male terms in English are referring to those with unknown or indeterminate gender as singular they, and using humans, people, or humankind, instead of man or mankind.^[18]

History[edit]

The notion that parts of the English language were sexist was brought to mainstream attention in Western English cultures by feminists in the 1970s.^[19] Simultaneously, the link between language and ideologies (including traditional gender ideologies) was becoming apparent in the academic field of linguistics.^[20] In 1975, the National Council of Teachers of English published a set of guidelines on the use of "non-sexist" language.^[21][22] Backlash ensued, as did the debate on whether gender-neutral language ought to be enforced.^[22][19] In Britain, feminist Maija Blaubergs' countered eight commonly used oppositional arguments in 1980.^[23] In 1983, New South Wales, Australia required the use of they in place of he and she in subsequent laws.^[24] In 1985, the Canadian Corporation for Studies in Religion passed a motion for all its ensuing publications to include "non-sexist" language.^[25] By 1995, academic institutions in Canada and Britain had implemented "non-sexist" language policies.^[26][27] More recently, revisions to the Women's Press publications of The Handbook of Nonsexist Writing and The A–Z of Non-Sexist Language were made to de-radicalize the original works.^[27] In 2006, "non-sexist" was challenged: the term refers solely to the absence of sexism.^[27] In 2018, the State of New York enacted policy to formally use the gender-neutral terms police officer and firefighter.

General[edit]

Historically, the use of masculine pronouns in place of generic was regarded as non-sexist, but various forms of gender-neutral language have become a common feature in written and spoken versions of many languages in the late twentieth century. Feminists argue that previously the practice of assigning masculine gender to generic antecedents stemmed from language reflecting "the prejudices of the society in which it evolved, and English evolved through most of its history in a male-centered, patriarchal society."^[28] During the 1970s, feminists Casey Miller and Kate Swift created a manual, The Handbook of Nonsexist Writing, on gender neutral language that was set to reform the existing sexist language that was said to exclude and dehumanize women.^[29] In 1995, the Women's Press published The A–Z of Non-Sexist Language, by Margaret Doyle.^[30] Both publications were written by American authors, originally without the consideration of the British-English dialect.^[30] Many feminist efforts were made to reform the androcentric language.^[31] It has become common in some academic and governmental settings to rely on gender-neutral language to convey inclusion of all sexes or genders (gender-inclusive language).^[32][33]
Various languages employ different means to achieve gender neutrality:

• 
  Gender neutrality in languages with grammatical gender
  
• 
  Gender neutrality in genderless languages
  
• 
  Gender neutrality in English
  

Other particular issues are also discussed:

• 
  Gender marking in job titles
  
• 
  Gender-specific and gender-neutral pronouns
  

Gender indication[edit]

There are different approaches in forming a "gender-neutral language":

• 
  Neutralising any reference to gender or sex, like using "they" as a third-person singular pronoun instead of "he" or "she", and proscribing words like actress (female actor) and prescribing the use of words like actor for persons of any gender. Although it has generally been accepted in the English language, some argue that using "they" as a singular pronoun is considered grammatically incorrect, but acceptable in informal writing.^[34]
  
• 
  Creating alternative gender-neutral pronouns, such as "hir" or "hen" in Swedish.^[35]
  
• 
  Indicating the gender by using wordings like "he or she" and "actors and actresses".
  
• 
  Avoiding the use of "him/her" or the third-person singular pronoun "they" by using "the" or restructuring the sentence all together to avoid all three.^[34]
  
• 
  NASA now prefers the use of "crewed" and "uncrewed" instead of "manned" and "unmanned", including when discussing historical spaceflight (except proper nouns).
  

Gender-neutral language is language that avoids assumptions about the social gender or biological sex of people referred to in speech or writing. In contrast to most other Indo-European languages, English does not retain grammatical gender and most of its nouns, adjectives and pronouns are therefore not gender-specific. In most other Indo-European languages, nouns are grammatically masculine (as in Spanish el humano) or grammatically feminine (as in French la personne), or sometimes grammatically neuter (as in German das Mädchen), regardless of the actual gender of the referent.
In addressing natural gender, English speakers use linguistic strategies that may reflect the speaker's attitude to the issue or the perceived social acceptability of such strategies
Supporters of gender-neutral language argue that making language less biased is not only laudable but also achievable. Some people find the use of non-neutral language to be offensive.^[1]
[There is] a growing awareness that language does not merely reflect the way we think: it also shapes our thinking. If words and expressions that imply that women are inferior to men are constantly used, that assumption of inferiority tends to become part of our mindset... Language is a powerful tool: poets and propagandists know this – as, indeed, do victims of discrimination.^[2]
The standards advocated by supporters of the gender-neutral modification in English have been applied differently and to differing degrees among English speakers worldwide. This reflects differences in culture and language structure, for example American English in contrast to British English.
Supporters of gender-neutral language argue that the use of gender-specific language often implies male superiority or reflects an unequal state of society.^[3][4] According to The Handbook of English Linguistics, generic masculine pronouns and gender-specific job titles are instances "where English linguistic convention has historically treated men as prototypical of the human species."^[5] That masculine forms are used to represent all human beings is in accord with the traditional gender hierarchy, which grants men more power and higher social status than women.^[6]
Supporters also argue that words that refer to women often devolve in meaning, frequently developing sexual overtones.^[7]